Kevin Bronson on May 18th, 2023

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British pop greats Blur have released a new single, “The Narcissist,” and announced that their ninth album (and first in eight years), “The Ballad of Darren,” will be out July 21.

So as we imagine singing “I’m going to shine a light in your eyes / You will probably shine it back on me” with a huge crowd at a future festival, here, from the press announcement, is what the quartet has to say about the album:

Damon Albarn: “This is an aftershock record, reflection and comment on where we find ourselves now.”

Graham Coxon: “The older and madder we get, it becomes more essential that what we play is loaded with the right emotion and intention. Sometimes just a riff doesn’t do the job.”

Alex James: “For any long term relationship to last with any meaning you have to be able to surprise each other somehow and somehow we all continue to do that.”

Dave Rowntree: “It always feels very natural to make music together. With every record we do, the process reveals something new and we develop as a band. We don’t take that for granted.”

Blur has some huge shows in the U.K. this summer. Maybe they’ll come across the pond for a visit.

||| Stream: “The Narcissist”